The rideshare behemoths in California are Uber and Lyft still looking for ways to get the state’s attempt to classify its drivers as full-time employees, and the long play at this point very appears to be a vote-getter in November. But the two companies have also reportedly exploring alternative solutions, including the extreme measure of licensing their brands to fleet operators. You know, like a taxi service – the supposed saber industry that would replace those companies.
Citing sources familiar with the matter, the New York Times Tuesday reported that both companies have seen more than one black car service in California, likely to avoid paying their benefits. According to the paper, the plan would see Uber and Lyft as platforms for other companies to create their own ride-sharing fleets, a clever trick that allows Uber and Lyft to distance themselves from the work side of their companies and instead operate a bare shipping service.
The specifications of how such a model would work are not clear. iin theory, operating this way could make Uber or Lyft claim to be software platforms whose transportation services are not necessarily core to their businesses (as they have done, with limited success.) That livability of that argument soe of course totally dependent on those strangers, especially what level of control over drivers Uber would be willing to give up under such a model. A Uber spokesman told Gizmodo in an email statement that the company “is not sure if a fleet model will eventually be viable in California.”
“This is similar to how Uber Black worked a decade ago, with higher prices and less reliability,” the spokesman said. “In some models, drivers bring their own cars; in others the cars are owned by the fleet. In either case, drivers would probably earn a predetermined hourly wage for their time on the app – but in return, fleets would need to monitor and maintain drivers’ activity and efficiency, for example by putting drivers in shifts, dictating where and when to drive , and maintaining travel acceptance criteria. “
Melk Uber cars are already parts of wings, especially in New York City, especially because of the difficulty in get business licenses.
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Both companies have threatened to close temporarily in the state if they are forced to comply with AB5, although both also rely on the success of a voting measure, Theorem 22, that goes to vote in November. That initiative would allow gig-based employers to provide some of the benefits that drivers have with a full-time employee rating.
When reached for comment by Gizmodo on the reported licensing plans, a spokesman for Lyft only said that “alternative models” had been examined and confirmed the company’s position on Proposition 22.
“We’ve looked at alternative models, and the one that would work best for drivers is what we support in the mood: they stay independent and can work whenever they want, while also getting extra health care benefits and a earnings guarantee,” he said. Julie Wood, a spokeswoman for Lyft, said in a statement.
Lyft and Uber could close this week as soon as they are forced to follow AB5, although it does not appear that it is in Uber or Lyft’s best interest to stop operations. Such a move would also disproportionately punish drivers who rely on these companies for income, in a time of unusual economic uncertainty – although, given the general indifference that employers have shown to the well-being of their human workers, this would really be a surprise come?
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